In the road construction and mining industries, rocks and pavement are degraded using attack tools. Often, a drum with an array of attack tools attached to it may be rotated and moved so that the attack tools engage a paved surface or rock to be degraded. Because attack tools engage materials that may be abrasive, the attack tools may be susceptible to wear.
U.S. Pat. No. 6,733,087 to Hall et al., which is herein incorporated by reference for all that it contains, discloses an attack tool for working natural and man-made materials that is made up of one or more segments, including a steel alloy base segment, an intermediate carbide wear protector segment, and a penetrator segment comprising a carbide substrate that is coated with a super hard material. The segments are joined at continuously curved interfacial surfaces that may be interrupted by grooves, ridges, protrusions, and posts. At least a portion of the curved surfaces vary from one another at about their apex in order to accommodate ease of manufacturing and to concentrate the bonding material in the region of greatest variance.
Examples of degradation assemblies from the prior art are disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 6,824,225 to Stiffler; U.S. Patent Publication No. 2005/0173966 to Mouthaan; U.S. Pat. No. 6,692,083 to Latham; U.S. Pat. No. 6,786,557 to Montgomery, Jr.; U.S. Patent Publication No. 2003/0230926 to Mondy; U.S. Pat. No. 4,932,723 to Mills; U.S. Patent Publication No. 2002/0175555 to Merceir; U.S. Pat. No. 6,854,810 to Montgomery, Jr.; and U.S. Pat. No. 6,851,758 to Beach, which are all herein incorporated by reference for all they contain.